Out of all those rich and flavorful Indian dishes, from savory samosas to spicy biriyanis, butter chicken and tikka masala are two of the most popular plates. While these vibrant dishes can look similar, their flavors and origins differ wildly. If you’re torn on which to order, here’s exactly what sets butter chicken and tikka masala apart.
For starters, butter chicken is an Indian dish made up of roasted, marinated chicken that’s tossed in a creamy tomato sauce. Also known as murgh makhani, the origins of butter chicken are highly disputed. Still, most historians believe that Indian restaurant owner Kundan Lal invented it as a way to reuse his leftover tandoori chicken, which was otherwise going to waste. Originally made with bone-in chicken and a textured sauce, the butter gravy disguised the dry texture of the leftover protein.
While different variations of this dish exist today, butter chicken is usually made with smoky, boneless chicken and a smooth, buttery tomato sauce. Its mild, creamy flavors make it a favorite chicken dish of many celebrity chefs.
How tikka masala stands apart
The place of tikka masala’s invention is also hotly contested. Still, most believe Pakistani-Scottish chef Ali Ahmed Aslam created it in the 1970s. While living in Glasgow, he decided to adapt chicken curry to make it appeal to the British. This dish became tikka masala, and is now one of the United Kingdom’s most popular plates. No matter its origins, the flavors of this dish are consistent. Made up of boneless chicken and a chunky tomato sauce, it mimics the flavors of butter chicken, but differs in a few key ways.
Butter chicken has a milder, sweeter taste thanks to its heavy use of butter and cream. Tikka masala, on the other hand, lends a spicier, more complex tangy flavor due to its unique spice-heavy tomato gravy. Both dishes feature key spices you need for Indian dishes, such as garam masala, but milder spices like garlic, turmeric, and ginger make up butter chicken, while tikka masala includes spicier additions like coriander, cumin, and paprika. These differences in spice mean butter chicken has a more orange-leaning hue, while tikka masala is more red.
Both of these dishes start with chicken marinated in yogurt and spices, which is then heated in a tandoor oven. It’s only the spices and sauce that differ. If you prefer milder, creamy dishes, butter chicken might be the best choice for you. But if spice and texture is what you’re looking for, go for the tikka masala.
